If you don’t know what “L.T.” stands for by now, you’ve been living under a rock.
LaDainian Tomlinson powered the San Diego Chargers to the AFC West title on Sunday, running for three more touchdowns. The Chargers (11-2) blew out Denver 48-20, and, coupled with a loss by the Indianapolis Colts, took possession of the AFC’s best record. If they’re still on top in three weeks, the Chargers will have home-field advantage throughout the conference playoffs.
But it was Tomlinson, as usual, providing the thrills for the crowd at Qualcomm Stadium. His three touchdowns broke the record for TDs scored by one player in a season. Tomlinson’s 7-yard run with 3:50 left in the game gave him 29 touchdowns, one more than Shaun Alexander’s record set last season.
His teammates put him on their shoulders and Tomlinson raised the ball high into the air for punctuation.
“He is a king, and he should be treated like one,” said Chargers left guard Kris Dielman.
Tomlinson also set a Chargers record with his eighth 100-yard game of the season. More records are on the way.
“I believe he is the finest running back to ever wear an NFL uniform,” Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer said.
Tomlinson wanted to share in the glory with his offensive line.
“Once I got over the pylon, my initial thought process was to bring every guy on the offensive unit over to share that moment,” Tomlinson said. “We made history today.”
Some players you should know: Tomlinson knows these guys quite well ” they block for him. The unsung heroes of the Chargers offensive line who help open up holes for Tomlinson are: Marcus McNeill (No. 73), 6-feet-7-inches, 337 pounds, left tackle, rookie out of Auburn; Kris Dielman (No. 68), 6-4, 310, left guard, fourth year out of Indiana; Nick Hardwick (No. 61), 6-, 295, center, third year out of Purdue; Mike Goff (No. 79), 6-5, 311, right guard, ninth year out of Iowa; Shane Olivea (No. 70), 6-4, 312, right tackle, third year out of Ohio State.
Jaguars run over Colts: Indianapolis lost for the third time in four games on Sunday, and if the Colts don’t fix their run defense, they’ll face an early playoff exit.
The tandem of Maurice Jones-Drew (166 yards) and Fred Taylor (131 yards) combined for 297 of the Jaguars 375 yards on the ground against the Colts bottom-ranked run defense.
Missed tackles or no tackling at all were the biggest problems for the Colts, who failed again to clinch the AFC South.
The 375 total rushing yards tie for the second-most in the NFL since the 1970 merger. Cincinnati gained 407 against Denver in 2000 and Chicago also ran for 375 yards, against Green Bay in 1977.
Jacksonville won the game 44-17.
Week 14 Leaders:
PASSING
“¢ Chris Weinke, Panthers, 34-61, 423 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs.
“¢ Drew Brees, Saints, 26-38, 384 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INT.
“¢ Marc Bulger, Rams, 34-55, 356 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT.
RUSHING
“¢ Willie Parker, Steelers, 32 carries, 223 yards, 1 TD.
“¢ Ladell Betts, Redskins, 33 carries, 171 yards, 0 TD.
“¢ Maurice Jones-Drew, Jaguars, 15 carries, 166 yards, 2 TDs.
RECEIVING
“¢ Donald Driver, Packers, 9 catches, 160 yards, 1 TD.
“¢ Terry Glenn, Cowboys, 8 catches, 150 yards, 0 TD.
“¢ Drew Carter, Panthers, 8 catches, 144 yards, 1 TD.
Quote: “I just told him I felt like my mom was chasing me with a belt.”
-Tennessee Titans QB Vince Young on what he said to team owner Bud Adams about his game-winning, 39-yard run in overtime at Houston.
Sidelines: Fresh off their 42-17 whipping of Dallas on Sunday night, the New Orleans Saints are entertaining thoughts of an NFC South Division crown and a first-ever, first-round playoff bye. With Drew Brees throwing for 384 yards and five touchdowns, he took the spotlight over Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, who went 16 of 33 for 249 yards and two interceptions. The Saints (9-4) have the NFC’s second-best record behind the 11-2 Chicago Bears”¦Speaking of the Bears, kick return specialist Devin Hester returned two more for touchdowns in Monday night’s 42-27 win over St. Louis. Hester has six kick returns for TDs this season, a new NFL record. Hester had four returns on the night for 225 yards (56.3 average), with his TDs coming on returns of 94 and 96 yards. It was peculiar that the Rams elected to kick to Hester after pulling to within 35-20 with 7:22 left in the fourth quarter. Hester returned it for a 42-20 Bears lead.
